United Youth Corps in Jordan: Where Are Your Eyes?

by Emily Smith

Before we came to Jordan, we heard all about the hospitality of the people here. We tried to prepare ourselves for drinking lots of tea and for being invited into many homes for dinner. But what struck me most about the people in Jordan goes far beyond the constant supply of tea and coffee. After knowing us for just a few months, they are ready to give us anything within their power.

One example in particular brought to mind the very words of Jesus Christ. Lena VanAusdle and I were riding the bus home one day, when our good friend, Jamal, struck up a conversation with us. He began telling us that he loved us as he loves his sisters and that if we ever need anything, to just let him know. Then he said something that I found rather thought-provoking. He said, "If you need eyes, I will give you my eyes."

Whether he meant this statement literally or not, it showed an attitude of sacrifice that goes beyond the regular gesture of a mere cup of tea. In John 15:12-13, Jesus said, "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends"(emphasis added).

Many times in God's Word we read that love is much more than a fuzzy feeling. In this particular passage, we understand that love is being willing to give up all that we have for the good of another person. But what if that means giving up something as precious as our eyesight or the very breath we breathe? How can we come to that point, where we are literally willing to lay down our lives for our friends?

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:1: "For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." Paul understood that this physical life is not all there is. God has given us a hope for a better life to come, eternal life in His family! The life that He promises is far greater than anything physical.

In fact, God actually tells us that focusing on that spiritual life is extremely important. "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Romans 8:5-6).

Here we see that focusing on the spiritual is a life-or-death issue. So, where do you set your mind? Do you spend most of your time thinking about physical things, or do you set your mind on the spiritual life to come?

If our focus is on the spiritual, then nothing physical can come between us and serving God. We will truly be able to give up anything in this life, even if that means laying down our lives for our friends. Our friend Jamal expressed to us a love that reaches deeper than a warm feeling of affection. He showed us a great example of sacrifice that we normally do not find in the world in which we live.

Let's set our mind on things above so that we, too, may be able to say to our friends, "If you need eyes, I will give you my eyes." UN

To read more about the life and times of the Jordan Youth Corps volunteers, visit the blog at uycjordan08.blogspot.com.